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Media Jobs

The biggest player and influence in the digital revolution has been social media. While as mentioned above, this has changed the media game, it also has given rise to a plethora of new job opportunities. The types of jobs you can have in social media range from a top level communication executive to a content manager. Because social media is a necessity, jobs incorporating this aspect of media are needed at every type of company.

While many of these positions entail responsibilities outside of social media directly, it has become so important and necessary to the skill set of all the above media jobs. For instance, the VP of Communications leads and oversees the implementation of a company's entire communication strategy but social media is a major part of it. While a public relations director is still looking for ad placement in traditional outlets, they are also in charge of overseeing the entire social media team in engaging with audiences across all platforms.

Social media has had the biggest influence on the flow of information in the digital revolution. And one way that it has flooded the job market is by having a domino effect in application startups. There are over 500K digital startup companies and the Silicon Valley serves as the industry's mecca.

As of April 2016, the digital startups Snapchat and Pinterest were both valued at 16 and 11 billion respectively. Snapchat roughly employs 330 people and Pinterest employs about 500. They are of course the younger siblings to the wildly successful seniors: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. These are just a few examples of digital startups that have exploded with growth and job opportunities over the past decade.

So we all can see the media landscape has vastly changed, and for some such as a newspaper journalist, it can seem bleak. But if this is you, don't jump on the express train to doomsville. While traditional roles have narrowed because the manner in which people get content has changed, there are new opportunities that a job seeker with media savvy can be the perfect candidate for.

People generally get their news, updates, and entertainment from blogs, short videos, email newsletters, and social media outlets such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. The common denominator is online. People aren't bending down on their porch to grab the good old black and white on top of their doormat. So that just means journalists need to adapt to writing in a shorter fashion with an eye for visual aids.

Most web sites that are labeled as news sites get their information from traditional outlets, such as the Associated Press wire. So the function for news is the same; it's just with a different presentation and the stories are shorter. According to Nielson, on the average web page, users have time to read about 20% of the words on an average visit. Users get their news quickly and then are looking for a way to engage. A good example of how people ingest their news is by looking at how people stayed updated on the Paris attacks - through social networks and video. Readers got the news and then turned to Twitter and Facebook to comment and actively participate in the conversation.

Another big implementation of 2015 that we will see impacting companies for the next few years is the aggregated distribution model. Snapchat Discover, Twitter Moments, Apple News and Instant Articles are good examples of how these social media companies are inviting publishers to create native content for their platforms to reach more users.

If news is your field, the top places to work are the digital arms of traditional news networks or the digitally born news sites such as Buzzfeed and Huffington Post. Here's a look at the top 10 online news entities of 2015 according to the Pew Research Center of Journalism and Media:

As you can see, if media is where you want to work, understanding how to facilitate engagement is the key to right now. People still are getting their facts and ingesting news but it is no longer passively. If constant updating, constant interaction, and constant adapting drive you, then you are well suited to work in today's media market. The phrase, "It's not what you say, it's how you say it," couldn't be more applicable.